Melica Niccole

I am giving people a platform on my blog to tell their story or a story of someone close to them. Here’s the first story.

My mom has struggled with anxiety and depression all her life, and she also has bipolar disorder with some adhd traits. She’s getting older, and this was her first time flying on a plane. She was nervous, but happy, because she was coming to visit me. She arrived with almost no issues – she accidentally took someone else’s suitcase that was also black, and had a huge red ribbon on it -what were the odds haha! but we noticed before leaving the airport, so we were able to fix it quickly.

But when it was time for her to return home, it was a completely different story. The brain works better when we’re happy, and I knew traveling back home alone would be hard for her. We went to the airport with a heavy heart.

At the entrance, I noticed the Sunflower symbol, I had learned about it on TikTok. It’s used to identify people with invisible disabilities so they can receive extra support. I went over and asked about it, and they just had me fill out a short form with my mom’s information and flight details. That was it.

I gave her the lanyard and told her to wear it with pride. There’s no shame in struggling with mental health — she should be proud for asking for help and facing her fears! (Back home, she barely left the house and was afraid to take the bus or the train.)

She was happy to receive the extra support, and after we said our goodbyes, she went through migration and the security check. But about an hour later, she stopped replying to my messages. I had a bad feeling. I went back to the Sunflower support desk and asked if they could check on her. A few minutes later, they found her — she had lost her backpack and coat.

She still had her ID, so they printed a new boarding pass and let her know I had been looking for her. We waited for about half an hour, and then the backpack turned up — she had forgotten to grab it after it went through the scanner at security.

Thankfully, the airport staff got it back to her just in time for her to board the plane.

It was a stressful couple of hours, but I’m so incredibly grateful for the assistance. 

Back when we lived together in Argentina, both my mom and I struggled with our mental health. But when I moved to Peru, I discovered that I’m autistic, and I began learning about neurodiversity from a more positive perspective. That journey brought me to many healing and empowering experiences — I even participated in the first neurodiverse art exhibition in Peru.

Meanwhile, my mom was still in the old mindset — one where mental health struggles were seen as something shameful. So it felt really meaningful to share this new light with her, to show her a different way of understanding herself. I tried to teach her to speak to herself with kindness, to learn who she is, and to accept that she doesn’t need to be “fixed.” She just needs to be understood, and to have systems that work for her — even if they don’t work for everyone else, that’s okay.

It’s going to be a journey, but she promised me she’ll look for a new therapist — one who’s aligned with this more compassionate, neurodiversity-affirming approach.